


Ulagartha

by Dragon Keeper Natalie (Scat)



Category: Ulagartha
Genre: Distopia, Dragons, Future Fic, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-02-24
Updated: 2015-03-08
Packaged: 2018-03-14 23:52:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,202
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3430196
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Scat/pseuds/Dragon%20Keeper%20Natalie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It is 150 years in the future and a nuclear bomb has hit what used to be Asia (or more specifically, China).  The radiation has created dragon-like creatures called Ulagartha or Ulagarthi plural.  While a war is going on in the Blood Isles, a governmental facility has been established in a continent known as Jxi which used to South America and they are finding the strongest, smartest children on the planet to become trainers of the Ulagarthi to be used in the war, one of these children being an orphan named Rain, who is sure that the government isn't telling the kids everything...</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is the first chapter of my first book and I'd really appreciate some constructive feedback. This is a rough draft and the story isn't finished yet, but I have big hopes for this. Even so, I could use any help that you guys offer me, from cool futuristic names to different animals that have been mutated by the nuclear bomb (So far there is the Ulagarthi, a spider that has 14 legs and spins the strongest material on the planet that is fireproof, waterproof, and is used in the bodysuits, and a type of fish.) All help is welcome. Thank you all!

            12:00 A.M., January 1st, 2156 read the clock screen on my arm.  More specifically, the tablet attached to the inside part of my right arm of my brand new, high tech, government grade bodysuit.  I tapped a few buttons lazily and a Daily Log screen titled ‘New Year’s Resolution’ popped up.  I tapped the microphone button.

            “My New Year’s Resolution:  Life suddenly got a heck of a lot more complicated.  Don’t screw up.”  I said grimly, and then closed the log.

            I wondered what I might be doing at the Children’s Long Term Detainment and Care Facility (or as I liked to call it, the Prison) right now.  Probably sleeping, or at least pretending to sleep.  I never really got much sleep anymore.  I would have never guessed that I would be on a Hypertrain, worth millions or Zynes, traveling to some government testing place or something.  And yet here I am, staring out the window at the tree-less landscape and star-less sky, wondering what will happen in a few hours when I pull into the newest, most secretive government facility ever created after the Bombing of Lyn.

            Even though I have the best grades anyone had ever seen for 23 years, I can't wrap my head around leaving the Facility.  I'm only 14, so I was expecting at least four more years before escaping.  Not that I’m complaining about leaving that place.  It’s just so sudden.

            The mysterious official had arrived earlier that day and had disappeared into the Headmaster’s office for a long meeting.  I tried all of my eavesdropping tricks, but the two people were too quiet to hear through the 200 year old walls or vents.  After a while, the official left and I scrambled to look nonchalant by doodling on my arm as the Headmaster came out.

            “Rain,” he snapped.  “Quit drawing and look sharp for this young man.  He’s come all this way to see you.”

            “Me?”  I asked and the Headmaster glared.  _A government official here to see me?_ I thought.  _I must be worse than I thought._ The man bent down on one knee so that we could look eye to eye and I recognized the small act of equality.  I decided to trust him, just a little bit.

            “Hi Rain,” he said.  “I’ve come a long way to see you.  Do you want to talk?”  I nodded, dropping my pen and lowering my sleeve over the half-finished drawing.  I followed the official down a hallway and took in his every detail.  He was tall, at least two feet taller than me, and I’m five feet.  That means he was probably a soldier, and a good one at that for being modified to be taller, but he looks just barely old enough now to be retired from fighting, so around 35.  He had ice blue eyes and short blonde hair.  Height excluded, he looked just like any other person coming to adopt a child except for the government bodysuit that he wore that was colored dark blue, indicating high political status.  He led me into a small sitting room and closed the door, then gestured for me to sit down.  His eyes followed me all the way to my seat, and I could tell he was observing me just as closely as I had just been observing him.  He was quiet for a moment.

            “I know you’ve been through a lot, haven’t you.”  He said gently.

            “I guess you could say that.”

            “You seem mature for your age.  You’re only 14, correct?”

            “Yes, sir.”

            The man chuckled as he pressed a few buttons on the tablet.  “You don’t need to worry about the ‘sir’ just yet.  Call me Rex for now.”  The man focused on the tablet for a second.  “According to your files, you have the best grades in the Facility, as well as an outstanding physical record.”

            “I just do what I’m supposed to.”  I said, shrugging.

            “However, you’ve been in detention more than out, and you’ve been in a good deal of fights.  What did Neil Wormiest do, exactly?”

            “He said my parents weren’t ever coming back for me,” I said, my hands curling into fists at the memory.  “I did what any kid would do.”

            “You put him in the infirmary with a broken nose and two cracked ribs.”

            “I didn’t mean to.  He was just asking for it.”  I said, lowering my head guiltily and staring at the floor.

            “Not the best way to get adopted.” Rex said. 

            “I don’t care about that.” I said, too quickly to be believable.  Rex stays quiet, waiting for me to say something.  I’m tired of waiting.  “Why are you here?  Why did you come all of this way to see me?”

            “I was sent here to offer you a job and a chance.  There’s a governmental experiment on a continent known as Jxi.  We need kids that are as academically and physically talented as you.  The pay is very good and after you’ve finished your assignment, you can live a long a carefree life.”

            “Why do you need kids for your experiment.  Why not just use other adults?”

            “The brains of children and adults are very different.  Children are more spontaneous, more capable of thinking outside of the box and improvising while still following orders.  Unfortunately, I can't reveal very much at this location and time.”  _This location and time?_ I thought, suspiciously.  _What’s that supposed to mean?_

            “Why should I leave?”  I asked, leaning back in my chair.

            “What reason do you have to stay?” He looked up at me and a whistle blew in the distance.

            “That would be the conductor,” he said, standing and brushing off his suit, even though there is nothing on it.  “He’s impatient to leave.  Look, every second you and I spend here, we are wasting each other’s time.  The train leaves in half an hour.  I can’t force you to make this decision, you have to make it for yourself.  Will you come with me?”

            “If I go, will I have a better chance of getting adopted, a cleaner record?”  I said, and Rex thought for a minute.

            “If you come with me,” he said slowly.  “You won’t need to get adopted.”  There’s a silence as we stare at each other for a second.

            “When do we leave?”

 

 


	2. Hypertrain

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It is 150 years in the future and a nuclear bomb has hit what used to be Asia (or more specifically, China). The radiation has created dragon-like creatures called Ulagartha or Ulagarthi plural. While a war is going on in the Blood Isles, a governmental facility has been established in a continent known as Jxi which used to South America and they are finding the strongest, smartest children on the planet to become trainers of the Ulagarthi to be used in the war, one of these children being an orphan named Rain, who is sure that the government isn't telling the kids everything..

I’d been given a fancy bodysuit as soon as I’d left the room, as well as the time before the train left to say goodbye to my friends. Considering I didn’t have any friends or any belongings to get, I used the time to check out the Hypertrain. I also got to go outside for the first time in my life. The air was colder out here than inside, but I heard that this part of the world is actually warmer than most other parts. According to my tablet, it’s 24 degrees Fahrenheit or -4 degrees Celsius, which is significantly colder than it was 150 years ago during summer, but that’s to be expected with the Climate Change of 2023. My suit keeps most of my body warm, but my bare hands and face are nipped by the cold. I decide I love it, the cold air flowing in and out of my lungs, the freedom of being outside. It makes me feel alive, convinces me that my life is changing forever.

Soon, a sharp whistle split the air and I jumped back. The Hypertrain lifted slowly off the ground, levitating in the air. Fascinated, I hurried over to it and bent down beside it. The train was completely off the ground, held up probably by a magnetic field of some type. It made sense, less parts of the train touching the ground meant less friction and more speed. I noticed Rex talking to another person in a black bodysuit whose face was covered by a hood and I stood up. Rex noticed me and waved me over, gesturing to the open door of the train. A small ramp extended from the doorway and the first official walked onto the train. 

“Ladies first,” Rex said, bowing and extending a hand to help me up. I nervously climbed in, expecting the train to fall back onto the ground or even just wobble with my weight, but it held steady, as unmoving as the earth. Rex followed and showed me down a hallway to the left, leading to a room about the same size as the room I’d shared with three other girls at the Prison, but a heck of a lot nicer. It had an elegant glass table in the middle of the room with four dining chairs surrounding it, as well as a black and white bed behind it, a coach and a large screen in the corner showing a fake fireplace, and a few cabinets and a microwave in the other corner. The train jolted slightly and I stumbled, but Rex kept his balance easily as he walked out the door.

The train started moving so seamlessly, I could only tell by seeing the landscape moving out the window. Soon we had picked up speed and the flat, barren, gray landscape that I’d seen through windows my whole life had given way to a more rolling, white landscape. As the train moved easily across the snowy landscape, I swiped through the things on my tablet until I stumbled upon the New Year’s Resolution log and plugged in my own. Snowflakes were falling gently and a few stuck to the window. I pulled one of the chairs over to the window and watched, looking at the patterns of every single snowflake. I’d read in a book once that every single snowflake was different so I occupied myself by memorizing the snowflakes and seeing if it was true. Soon, the excitement that had kept my awake throughout the day had worn off and I fell asleep with my cheek pressed against the window. The book had been right; every single snowflake was unique and beautiful in its own way.

I woke up and yawned, un-sticking myself from the window. I wiped the crust from my cheek and glanced out the window. The barren, flat landscape I’d seen earlier had been replaced with massive trees full of vines. The sun could barely peak through the leaves. I wondered if I was in a rainforest. I’d read about them in books, but had heard that they were really rare and very far south, almost at the South Pole. I always thought it was cool that there was a forest with my name in it, even though real rain only existed in the poles. The rest of the world only got snow, hail, or sleet. I like to think that my parents lived in the South Pole and that’s why they named me after rain. It’s hard to think of my parents for long, though, without crying, so I focus hard on the trees themselves and not their name.

There’s a knock on my door and I hurry over to open it. It’s Rex, smiling but looking hurried.

“You’re awake! Good. We’ll be arriving soon at the facility, so I’d get ready.”

“Anything I need to know?” I ask.

“Just remember that all of the other kids here, and a good deal of the adults too, have been through the same thing that you have. It’s been worse for others. You’re not alone.”  
“Thanks,” I say. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

“I’ve got to wake up Kan, see you in a little while.” Before I could ask who Kan was, Rex had already left. I used the reflection in the glass table to fix my hair, though my chin-length brown hair has never been too difficult to handle, and try to ignore the terrible pit in my stomach. I have nothing to be scared of, I tell myself. But I’ve heard the stories, tales of battlefields covered with blood, children gunned down as they rushed to help the wounded, and their parents. Other children pulling the trigger over and over again and seeing the faces of those they have killed in their dreams every night until they finally kill themselves. I’ve heard the stories. But that won’t be me. Will it?  
The train shudders and slows ever so slightly and my stomach flips, though I know it has nothing to do with the movement. We must be getting close. I grab some bread from a cabinet and move it from hand to hand, nervously shredding it. I find that the shape looks a bit like a snowflake and I rip the bread until it looks like one of my favorites from last night. I can’t bring myself to eat it, so I put it back on the counter and leave my room.

Rex and the other person are already at the door where we first entered. The whistle blows again and I ball my hands into fist to keep them from shaking.

“Good luck,” Rex says, and the train slows to a stop. Rex gets out first, followed closely by the official. I take a deep breath, ordering my stomach to stop doing gymnastics, and follow them.


End file.
